December 13, 2001
SUBJECT:
Special Exception Application SPX2001-00307 Applicant: Mr. & Mrs. J. Robert Teringo 2 Harrowgate Court Rockville, Maryland 20854 Planning Commission Review Date: December 19, 2001 Board of Appeals Public Hearing Date: January 12, 2002
REQUEST:
In accordance
with Section 25-296 of the City’s Zoning Ordinance, the applicant seeks
special exception approval to establish an accessory apartment on the second
level of a two story home and garage addition being constructed on his home
which is located in the R-90 (single family detached, restricted residential)
Zone.
RELEVANT
ISSUES:
Applicants must comply
with all conditions of approval as recommended herein.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Approval is recommended subject to full compliance with the following conditions:
ANALYSIS:
Property
Description
The subject property is located on the east side of Harrowgate Court, approximately
100 feet north of Kersey Lane. The applicants’ property is approximately
11,100 square feet in size and is located in the residential subdivision of
Potomac Woods. The property is improved with a two-story single family detached
dwelling (with a basement) and is of brick and frame construction. The site's
topography ranges from flat, to gentle, and pronounced surface sloping. The
surface elevation of the rear yard is higher than the surface grades of the
side and front yard areas of the site. The surface grades around the base of
the dwelling, however are relatively flat, with the more pronounced sloping
occurring in the front yard area of the site. The subject property contains
an array of mature plantings and trees all ranging in species and size, i.e.,
hardwood trees, evergreen shrubs, hedges, flowering and non-flowering plants,
etc.
Although not subject to special exception approval but relevant to this application
request, the applicants are currently expanding the existing dwelling via construction
of a two-story addition on the southeast side of the dwelling. The ground floor
of the new home addition as designed, will consist of a one-car garage, miscellaneous
storage area, laundry and utility rooms, a small foyer, and stairwell that leads
to the second level of the of the addition. The second story of the home addition,
is designed to serve as living quarters for the applicants (Mr. & Mrs. J.
Robert Teringo). These living quarters contain a family/living room, kitchen
and cooking facilities, full bath, and a single bedroom. After the home and
garage addition has been constructed, the existing on-site driveway will be
widened, creating on-site parking facilities that can accommodate three-(3)
vehicles.
Proposed
Site Use
The applicants seek special exception approval to establish an accessory apartment
on the second level of the two-story home addition currently being constructed
on the southeast side of the dwelling located at 2 Harrowgate Court. The property
owners plan to create new living accommodations on the second story of the new
home addition, which will serve as their primary residence. The applicants’
son and young family will occupy the remainder of the home. The applicants are
retired and would like to stay in their home without having the added burden
of fully maintaining the larger home, as they advance in age. The applicants
contracted with an architect and builder to design and construct an addition
onto their home that would be both functional and architecturally compatible
with the existing home.
While the proposed one-bedroom accessory apartment is designed to function independently
from the overall dwelling (i.e., exterior access, living amenities, utilities,
etc.) the proposed home addition in which the accessory living unit will be
located, does allow internal access between the existing home and newly constructed
home addition. In accordance with the plans submitted with the special exception
request, and those submitted with the project’s previously approved building
permits for the new addition, the planned home expansion is designed and being
constructed with building materials consistent with the existing dwelling.
Exterior dwelling access to the accessory apartment will be provided via separate
front and rear entry doors. The exterior “front” entrance door located
on the ground level of the new home addition (See Exhibits “2 & 4”),
enters onto a small foyer area, containing stairs that lead up to the second
floor, where the accessory apartment will be located. Exterior rear access to
the proposed accessory apartment will be via stairs that enter onto an open
elevated open deck, that will be constructed on the rear of the home addition,
allowing entry/exit directly from/to the accessory unit’s family/living
room area (See Exhibits “2 & 5”).
It is important to note that in approving the building permit (BLD2002-06754)
for the planned home addition, planning staff indicated in its sign off on the
permit, that the approval was for the home addition only and that the accessory
apartment was permitted only by grant of a special exception. Hence, when the
referenced building permit was issued, the applicants were informed they would
need to file and be granted a special exception in order to establish an accessory
living unit within the new the home addition. Thus, the applicants request approval
of the special exception as submitted, in order to establish the accessory apartment
as proposed.
Applicable Sections of the Zoning Ordinance & Staff Assessment
As per Section 25-296 of the Ordinance accessory apartments are permitted in
the R-90 Zone by grant of special exception. In accordance with Section 25-338
of the Ordinance the Board of Appeals shall not grant any petition for special
exception unless it finds from a preponderance of the evidence of record that:
1. The proposed use will
not adversely affect the City's Master Plan (the Plan), Zoning Ordinance, or
any other applicable law/s; and
The use does not violate or adversely affect the Plan or any known laws of the
City of Rockville. The land use designation of the property as assigned by the
Plan, is for detached residential (medium density – 2.5 to 4 dwelling units
per acre) land usage, which is also consistent with the property’s R-90
zoning classification. By allowing accessory apartments in residential zones
as special exception uses, it is inferred from the ordinance that these residential
uses are appropriate and compatible with other uses in the zone, if it can be
shown that these accessory units will not have an adverse impact on neighboring
properties.
2. The proposed use at the location selected will not: a) Adversely affect the
health and safety of residents or workers in the area; or b) Overburden existing
pubic services, including water, sanitary sewer, public roads, storm drainage
and other public improvements; or c) Be detrimental to the use or development
of adjacent properties or the neighborhood; and d) Change the character of the
neighborhood in which the use is proposed, considering services currently required,
population density, character and number of similar uses; and
As previously noted, the accessory apartment is being established to serve as
the primary residence of the applicants, allowing the remainder of the dwelling
to be occupied by the applicants’ son and young family. The applicants’
are retired and desirous of staying in their home, but not having all of the
burdensome responsibility of fully maintaining their larger home, as they move
towards advanced age. The home addition and proposed accessory apartment, in
which it will be located, pose no concern to the health, safety and welfare
of persons living or working in the community.
The site is currently served by public water and sewer, which will not require
major upgrade or retrofit to serve the applicants accessory living unit. There
is no evidence that there will be any substantive increase in vehicular traffic
generated from the applicants home, due to the establishment of the proposed
one-bedroom accessory apartment. As noted, the applicants have obtained the
required building permits and construction of the home addition is underway.
At this stage in the development review process, there are no indications that
existing storm drainage, sanitary sewer, and other public improvements within
the subject site are will require significant upgrades to accommodate the planned
expansion of the applicants’ home and accompanying building amenities.
The building addition in which the accessory apartment will be located, complies
with building setback and height limit requirements of he R-90 Zone. The applicants
have affirmed that the site area where the home addition is being constructed,
has/will be re-graded so that additional stormwater runoff generated by the
new home addition, is safely conveyed away from the applicants’ and abutting
homes, naturally diverting it towards the front yard area of the site, where
existing storm drainage infrastructure is located within the public street rights-of-way.
Although the accessory apartment will serve as the applicants’ primary
residence, it is subordinate to the principal use of the property, i.e., single
family detached residential use. Thus, it is highly unlikely that the applicants’
occupation of the accessory unit would create any physical disruption to neighboring
properties. The property is located within a well established, residential neighborhood,
comprised primarily of single family detached dwellings. The owners have been
advised that the unit must be operated and maintained in accordance with all
applicable requirements of the Zoning Ordinance. Such adherence serves to insure
that the health, welfare, and safety of the community will not be adversely
impacted by the proposed use.
Lastly, there is no evidence that the availability and/or delivery of public
services within the subject site area will be overburden or impacted by the
requested site use, i.e., public schools, police, fire & rescue, trash collection,
street maintenance & repair, snow removal, etc. Since the City’s Zoning
Ordinance restricts the number of persons who can legally occupy the accessory
unit, the limited number of persons (i.e., three) that can legally occupy the
subject unit would not substantively impact the population density of the site
area. In that, the subject land uses are permitted only by grant of special
exception, there is no evidence that the formal establishment of the applicants
accessory unit would bring about the proliferation of similar land uses within
the site area.
3. The proposed use complies
with the requirements of the ordinance applicable thereto.
Submission of the subject special exception request represents the applicants
efforts to satisfy and comply with the ordinance requirement to legally establish
an accessory apartment on the subject property which is located in the R-90
Zone.
In addition to satisfying the above (general) "standards for granting"
a special exception request, as per Section 25-372(b) of the Ordinance the
following "special development and use requirements" are applicable
to the use as proposed:
(c) Ownership Requirements
Lastly, the Board of Appeals
must make the following findings in addition to all of the other noted findings
and requirements in granting the subject special exception request:
1. That
such use will not constitute a nuisance because of traffic or number of people,
and will cause no objectionable noise, odors, or physical activity.
Based on the applicants intended use of the accessory unit, there is no evidence
that the occupants of the accessory unit would generate excessive amounts of
vehicular traffic. As noted, the applicants will reside in the accessory unit
and their son and his family will occupy the remainder of the house. The applicants
have owned their home for a number of years and desire to remain in their home
but not be faced with the day-to-day responsibility of maintaining a large home.
Establishment of the proposed accessory apartment on the top level of the new
home addition would enable the applicants to maintain a separate and independent
residence from that of their son’s family, and yet still remain in the
home they have lived in for so many years. There is no evidence the accessory
unit will create or cause excessive site activity, heighten noise levels, or
generate added vehicular traffic within the neighborhood.
2. That such use will not adversely impact parking or the traffic situation
in the neighborhood.
Once the new home and one-car garage addition is constructed, coupled with the
planned widening of the on-site driveway, the applicants will be able to park
a minimum of three (3) vehicles on-site. Due to the modest size of the accessory
unit, coupled with the manner in which it is to be used, there is no evidence
that the establishment of the applicants’ accessory apartment will alter
or adversely impact parking patterns within the subject site area. In those
events when the applicants and/or their son’s family have guests, there
should be sufficient on-street parking to accommodate such short-term parking
needs. Little if any appreciable impacts on neighborhood parking and traffic
generation are anticipated.
Based on all of the noted factors as reviewed in this staff report, staff recommends
that Special Exception Application SPX2001-00307 be approved subject to the
conditions referenced on pages one and two of this report.
COMMUNITY
NOTIFICATION PROCESS
Notification cards were sent to abutting property owners informing them of the
application request, pending Planning Commission meeting and Board of Appeals
public hearing, at which time the request will be publicly heard and considered.
Notices were sent to 171 property owners located within the site area. A list
of addressees is contained in the project’s application file, available
for public review and inspection.
/cdc
Attachments
Exhibit “1”
– House Location Plat
Exhibits “2” – Elevation Drawings
Exhibit “3” – Building Cross Section
Exhibit “4 thru 6” Floor Plans
Exhibit “7” – Ceiling/Roof Plan